New Every Morning

“This month shall stand at the head of your calendar: you shall reckon it the first month of the year." Exodus 12:2

This is God's instruction to the Israelites when they were still in the land of Egypt, before the first Passover. He wanted them to start counting their days with a new calendar. The Jews had been in Egypt for more than 400 years and they were used to the Egyptian calendar which was based on the predictable flooding of the Nile. The economy, culture, religious life of Egypt all revolved around this important holiday period, the Wafaa-El-Nil, which is still celebrated today starting on August 15 and goes on for two weeks. The Egyptian calendar year was divided into 3 seasons of flooding, growth and harvest. This was not what God wanted and it was very important that the Jews started out with a new calendar.

Our calendars should reflect what is important to us. It should show what we focus our attention on. Do we block off time for worship and fellowship with brothers and sisters? Can we see that we set aside time for God in our schedule? If we see that we have not really prioritized time with God in our calendar, I like to think we can always start again. Create a new calendar! After all, God's mercies are new every morning! (Lamentations 3:23)